China News Service, Beijing, March 29th: Title: Grandson recalls Zuo Quan: He fought for national independence until the last second
China News Service reporter Cheng Yu
"For national liberation and national reunification, Whampoa Military Academy has established a true revolutionary team. For my grandfather, coming to Whampoa Military Academy feels like he has entered a whole new world." Recently, the first batch of Whampoa Military Academy cadets and famous anti-Japanese generals In an exclusive interview with China News Service, Zuo Quan's grandson Sha Feng told reporters about his grandfather's Huangpu years.
Sun Shafeng, Zuo Quan’s grandson, a first-term cadet of Whampoa Military Academy, was interviewed by reporters. Photo by Cheng Yu
At the beginning of the 20th century, China was experiencing political turmoil and invasion by foreign powers. In May 1915, Yuan Shikai accepted the "Twenty-One Policies" that would cost him power and humiliate his country. The news reached a rural primary school in Liling, Hunan. Under the podium, Zuo Quan, a 10-year-old boy, burst into anger.
"One day the teacher walked into class and after being silent for a while, he suddenly turned around and wrote 'Don't forget the national humiliation of May 9th' on the blackboard, and then he burst into tears." Sha Feng said that his grandfather understood from this class What is national dignity and national peril? Afterwards, he also wrote on his clipboard, "Don't forget the national humiliation on May 9th, recall the national hatred on May 9th."
In 1924, inspired by "joining the army to save the country", Zuo Quan was admitted to the Guangzhou Army Lecture School, and then merged into the first phase of Huangpu Military Academy. The new atmosphere not only enabled him to master a large number of theoretical skills, but also enriched his thoughts. "At that time, Zhou Enlai was the director of the political department at Huangpu Military Academy. He focused on cultivating the revolutionary spirit and often gave lectures to everyone. Everyone would listen with great enthusiasm every time." Sha Feng said that at that time, the cadets were sitting on the ground in the large playground, and many of them People don’t take notes if it’s inconvenient for them, but Zuo Quan takes notes carefully every time, “because these theories are particularly eager for him.”
Sha Feng looked through Zuo Quan's books and materials. Photo by Cheng Yu
In 1925, after being introduced by Chen Geng and Zhou Yiqun, and approved by Zhou Enlai, Zuo Quan joined the Communist Party of China. In the same year, the National Revolutionary Army marched eastward to defeat the warlord Chen Jiongming and attacked the city of Tamsui (now Huiyang District, Huizhou City, Guangdong Province). Facing the enemy's solid city defense, Zuo Quan was not afraid and fought bravely. "When we rushed to the city, we found that there were too few siege ladders and the soldiers could not get to the city. My grandfather responded accordingly and organized soldiers to use human ladders." This allowed the student army to rush to the city, and the enemy was quickly defeated. "The attack on Tamsui City was his first time on the battlefield, his first face-to-face fight with the enemy. Through these battles he participated in during his time at the Whampoa Military Academy, my grandfather accumulated experience and at the same time honed his commanding abilities."
In the following years of military service, Zuo Quan gradually grew into an outstanding general. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he served as the chief of staff of the Eighth Route Army's forward headquarters. He assisted in commanding the troops to go to the anti-Japanese front in North China. He devoted a lot of effort to the regularization of the Eighth Route Army's troops and the construction of arsenals, and won many battle victories such as the Hundred Regiment Battle.
In May 1942, the Japanese army launched a large-scale "mopping up" campaign against the Taihang Anti-Japanese Base Area. Zuo Quan, in charge of the troops, ignored the Japanese artillery bombardment and climbed a high slope to organize a breakout. Unfortunately, he was hit in the head by shrapnel and died. He was only 37 years old when he died. He was the highest-ranking general of the Eighth Route Army who died in the Anti-Japanese War.
"At that time, the enemy was constantly bombarding the hilltop with artillery fire. Some agency staff and party school students had no combat experience. No one dared to run in the face of the artillery fire. My grandpa kept standing on the mountain and shouted for everyone to rush over and not be afraid." As a veteran. An experienced commander, Zuo Quan fully understood that it was very dangerous to stand on the hillside and shout when facing bombing. "But what he was thinking about at the time was his responsibility to protect the team. He is a national hero, and he did this for national independence."
Sha Feng showed Zuo Quan’s family letters to reporters. Photo by Cheng Yu
On May 22, 1942, Zuo Quan wrote his last letter to his wife before his death, which was full of tenderness: "Zhilan! My dear, it is easy to say goodbye but hard to see when we are apart. We have been separated for twenty-one months. When will we meet again? Miss you, Miss you." Sha Feng always sighs with emotion every time he reads these letters. "He was a general and fought so many battles, but when he talked about my mother, he would use 'little cutie' and 'little angel'. He used all the cutest words he could think of to describe my mother. On my body."
A few years ago, Sha Feng received more than ten family letters from Zuo Quan from his mother. Now, he also regards carrying forward the deeds of his ancestors as his mission. In his view, the letter paper has turned yellow, but the vicissitudes of time have never faded, and the Huangpu spirit that is deeply embedded in it can also transcend mountains and seas and remain new for a long time.
Sha Feng recalled that his mother once brought back a calendar with the theme of anti-Japanese generals from Taiwan, including his grandfather Zuo Quan. "So I think these outstanding generals during the Huangpu period, these people who went to the battlefield for the country and the nation, have been recognized by our entire nation." Sha Feng believes that the Huangpu spirit is the spirit of patriotism on the one hand, and the spirit of patriotism on the other. On the one hand, the revolutionary spirit of doing whatever it takes for national liberation and national reunification should be inherited and carried forward. "The two sides of the Taiwan Strait can reunify peacefully at an early date, allowing our country to truly realize the ideals of our predecessors." (End)